Local News

Bomb Threat at Fresno State Dorms Hoax Over Pronoun Reveal

FRESNO – Fresno State students and staff were evacuated from the dorms and dining hall late Thursday morning after a bomb threat was emailed to the university. The threat also included targets on the house of the university's president in the Fig Garden area of Fresno and a professor in the Leon S. Peters School of Business.

At first, all the dorm residents were evacuated to the dorm parking lot, then moved to the fence line along Ceder Avenue before housing director Erin Boele ordered the students to march to the school’s recreation center a half a mile away, next to the Save Mart Center. Many students were in various states of dress, one girl wearing a robe and one male student without a shirt.

Prisoner Apprehended Hours after Walking Away from Conservation Camp

FRESNO – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) officials announced an incarcerated person who walked away from Growlersburg Conservation Camp in El Dorado County was apprehended a few hours after walking away from the facility.

At 3:15 a.m., the Fresno Police Department took 42-year-old Jarid Taylor into custody without incident.

Former Fresno Sleep Clinic Owner Pleads Guilty to Over $1 Million in Fraudulent Medicare Claims

FRESNO - Travis Gober, 44, of Hanford, pleaded guilty to health care fraud and aggravated identity theft charges today for submitting over $1 million in fraudulent claims for sleep studies to Medicare, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court records, Gober owned the VIP Sleep Center, which operated sleep clinics in Fresno and Tulare Counties. Sleep clinics perform diagnostic sleep studies on patients to identify disorders like sleep apnea and narcolepsy.

Bitcoin ATM Company Forfeited Over $1 Million for Conspiring to Violate the Bank Secrecy Act

SACRAMENTO - Folsom company Amani Investments LLC, which operated Coinucopia kiosks that exchanged U.S. currency for Bitcoin, forfeited $1 million in currency, a Mercedes-Benz, Bitcoin, and other items for its criminal efforts to avoid reporting requirements under the Bank Secrecy Act, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

In February 2023, Amani Investments LLC, doing business as Coinucopia, pleaded guilty to conspiring to avoid filing Currency Transaction Reports (CTRs) that are required under federal law. Congress enacted the federal Bank Secrecy Act to combat the laundering of criminal proceeds, and it requires money services businesses to report each transaction involving more than $10,000 in currency. Willful violation of the requirement to file these reports, commonly called CTRs, is a federal criminal offense.

Oakhurst Man Sentenced for Excavating Native American Cultural Property

FRESNO - Vrance Fanklin Myers, 35, of Oakhurst, was sentenced Tuesday by United States District Judge Ana de Alba to 3 years probation and a $10,000 fine for unauthorized excavation and removal of archeological resources from public lands, United States Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

Additionally, Myers was ordered to pay $10,023.48 in restitution, perform 100 hours of community service, and make a public statement concerning his offense, and he is banned from entering public lands for recreational purposes during the period of his probation.